This invention relates to water skier safety devices, and more particularly, this invention relates to wireless water skier alert systems.
Water skiing is becoming a popular past time and recreational activity. It requires not only a boat operator driving a boat towing a water skier via a rope and tow bar handle secured thereto, but also an observer positioned in the boat as a passenger, who constantly monitors the water skier performance. The observer notes to the water skier whether the water skier indicates a desire for changed water skier conditions, such as speeding up, slowing down, or turning around, or has fallen and requires the boat to return and pull the water skier back up out of the water either into a skiing position, or draw the skier into the safety of the boat.
When an observer is not available, it is necessary to include a device to apprise immediately a boat operator if a skier has fallen or voluntarily released hold of the ski rope. This is necessary to ensure that the boat operator does not continue driving the boat a long distance from the location where the water skier has fallen, and thus, placing the water skier into a dangerous position where other boats could run over him or her. Some systems use a wire extending from a water skier tow bar handle to an alarm positioned within the boat indicating when a skier has fallen. This could be accomplished, such as when the tow bar handle hits the water and blocks a signal generated from a transmitter. Other systems, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,611, use a wireless transmitter for generating a signal that generates an alarm after the skier lets go of the tow bar handle. In these systems, a preselected frequency is no longer transmitted and an alarm is activated by closure of a switch.
Other systems use complicated tow bar handles, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,483,683, teaching a complicated handle assembly with on/off switches and manually actuated trigger switches. U.S. Pat. No. 5,408,221 discloses a downed water skier warning system using electronic water sensors for sensing when the rope-handle of the skier tow-rope lands in the water. These water and pressure sensors are in remote communication with audible and visual tow boat operator alarms and visual xe2x80x9cskier downxe2x80x9d warning indicators.
It would be advantageous if the standard cylindrically configured and longitudinally extending tow bar handle could be used with a skier alert system that generated not only an indication of a xe2x80x9cskier downxe2x80x9d signal, but generated other signals that indicate a desired water skier condition, such as speeding up, slowing down, or a directional turning around. It would also be advantageous if a simple system was provided for the boat operator to know when a skier down condition has occurred and when any change occurs in desired water skier conditions.
The present invention is advantageous and provides a water skier alert system that is used with a boat towing a water skier via a rope and tow bar handle secured thereto and allows a water skier to not only indicate to a boat operator any desired water skier conditions, but also indicate a skier down condition. The system of the present invention also indicates to a boat operator in a simple and uncomplicated manner whether a skier is down or what desired water skier conditions should be changed.
In accordance with the present invention, a water skier alert system of the present invention includes a radio receiver that is adapted to be positioned on the boat towing the water skier for receiving wireless radio signals transmitted from the tow bar handle in response to a skier down condition or the water skier""s actuation of actuator controls to indicate a desired water skier condition. A display is operative with the receiver and has indicia on the display that are actuated by the wireless transmitter signals and indicative of the skier down condition and each of the desired water skier conditions.
In one aspect of the present invention, the desired water skier conditions comprise a speed up, a slow down and a turn around condition. The indicia on the display comprise an up arrow icon indicative of the speed up condition, a down arrow icon indicative of a slow down condition, and a turn around icon indicative of a turn around condition. A stop sign icon can be indicative of a skier down position. These indicia can be color coded and each can blink a predetermined number of times when actuated. An alarm can also be sounded for a predetermined period of time indicative of a desired water skier condition or a skier down condition. The alarm can sound for a longer period of time when indicating a skier down condition, indicating a greater emergency than when indicating a desired water skier condition. The alarm gives an audible indication to the boat operator to look down at the display momentarily, and thus, visually indicate the skier down condition or desired water skier condition.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, the water skier tow bar handle assembly comprises a cylindrically configured and longitudinally extending tow bar handle to which a tow rope is secured for towing a water skier and defining a surface having a grip portion over which the fingers and hands of the water skier clasps. The tow bar handle defines a battery compartment, and in one non-limiting aspect of the present invention, has at least one open end defining the battery compartment for receiving at least one battery.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, a battery compartment cover is removably mounted on the tow bar handle and contains at least one battery within the battery compartment. A pressure sensor is positioned at the grip portion and sensitive to hand and/or finger pressure exerted by a water skier. Control actuators are positioned along the grip portion and are water skier actuated to indicate a desired water skier condition. A wireless radio transmitter is positioned within the tow bar handle and operatively connected to a battery mounted within the battery compartment, the pressure sensor, and the control actuators for generating wireless signals indicative of a skier down condition when pressure is no longer exerted on the pressure sensor and desired water skier conditions after water skier actuation of the control actuators.
In one aspect of the present invention, an antenna is operatively connected to the wireless radio transmitter. It can be mounted on the tow bar handle, or inside, or other locations suggested by those skilled in the art. The antenna can also comprise a coil wound over the tow bar handle.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, the control actuators comprise three control buttons, one each for actuating the wireless transmitter and generating a wireless signal indicative of a desired speed up, slow down or turn around condition. Each pressure actuated control button can be responsive to pressure exerted by a water skier. These control buttons can include embedded control buttons positioned below the surface of the tow bar handle. In another aspect of the present invention, the control buttons are positioned about xe2x85x9 inch below the surface of the handle that forms a grip for the handle.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, the pressure sensor extends substantially along the longitudinal direction of the grip portion. The wireless radio transmitter is automatically operative whenever pressure is exerted on the pressure sensor or when any of the control buttons are actuated. The wireless radio transmitter is automatically shut down after a predetermined time when no pressure is exerted on the pressure sensor or the control actuators are not actuated. The control actuators can be color coded for indicating desired conditions.